Earlier this year PPDS expanded its long-term exclusive partnership with eight-time F1 champions Oracle Red Bull Racing, with the installation of an enormous 46.25m wide Philips dvLED wall inside the team’s newly updated MK-7 headquarters in Milton Keynes, UK.
It’s one of Europe’s most unique and immersive experiential event spaces. The vibrant 1,004m2 MK-7 venue – located within the Red Bull Racing Technology Campus – has been welcoming and entertaining visitors from around the world since 2018, providing an F1-infused event setting for businesses and individuals. With priceless Oracle Red Bull Racing memorabilia, artifacts, and championship-winning cars layered throughout the venue, MK-7 is a setting like no other.
Oracle Red Bull Racing wanted a fresh look and feel for the MK-7 event space, with the existing AV setup deemed outdated, too static, and no longer reflective of its brand values and the fast-paced world of F1 racing. Seeking a more dynamic, versatile, and immersive way to host its wide and varied range of events, Oracle Red Bull Racing, PPDS, and a trusted team envisioned a custom-designed horseshoe-shaped Philips dvLED wall.
Measuring a colossal 46.25m x 2.75m, the Philips Public dvLED wall – understood to be the largest dvLED wall installed in an indoor events space in Europe – is the centerpiece of the main auditorium, and a perfect backdrop to the growing horseshoe of F1 cars on display. This priceless collection of F1 cars ranges from 2005 – the Team’s F1 debut – through to and including those driven by reigning and three-time World Drivers’ Champion (2021, 2022, 2023), Max Verstappen.
PPDS joined forces with Oracle Red Bull Racing in 2022 as an ‘Official Team Supplier’, with the mission of transforming the race day experience for VIP guests inside the team’s famous Oracle Red Bull Racing Paddock Club.
In 2023, PPDS became Oracle Red Bull Racing’s exclusive ‘Digital Display Supplier’. Forming a deeper and more integrated partnership and extending beyond race day hospitality, this included a range of solutions for use inside the team’s spectacular Red Bull Technology Campus in Milton Keynes. This will also for the first time include solutions developed by PPDS inside the newly built 5,000sq ft Red Bull Ford Powertrains facility, used to design and develop the next generation of engines in-house.
For this latest project, PPDS teamed up with Netherlands-based AV integration specialist Ruitech Solutions and Vogel’s to tie together the spectacle of Oracle Red Bull Racing technology with dvLED technology.
With no visible windows or natural light inside the main MK-7 event space, the Philips Public LED 7000 Series provided the necessary high refresh rates, color, and brightness quality, together with a 2.4mm pixel pitch, delivering a total screen resolution of 19240 x 1144.
Equally, befitting this premium event venue, Philips LED displays are detailed with built-in cabling to keep wires tidy in daisy-chained cabinets. The Philips Public LED 7000 Series’ low power consumption also adhered to both PPDS’ and the Team’s sustainability commitments.
Nick Kenton, Director of Hospitality and Events at Oracle Red Bull Racing, commented: “Since Oracle Red Bull Racing’s F1 debut in 2005, its mission has been encapsulated in one simple phrase – to win and do it differently. We don’t see barriers, we see only challenges to overcome, a mentality that helps us to achieve our targets and goals in everything we do, on and away from the racetrack.
“The MK-7 event space is home to a number of winning race cars and the space needed to adapt to allow flexibility for growth and change, as well as a fresh look and feel, with cutting-edge technologies to match. Working with PPDS, our visions for this stunning venue have been fulfilled.”
This latest collaboration between PPDS and Oracle Red Bull Racing follows the recent upgrade of the team’s MK-7 marketing team offices in the same building, which included 13 digital signage and interactive displays. PPDS also continues to exclusively supply a range of advanced Philips Professional Displays, used to elevate the VIP hospitality experience for guests in the Paddock Club during F1 race weekends.
With this expanded strategic alliance, there will be more innovation in the years to come, as racing and AV technology continues to transform at the pace of F1.
